The Black Liberators was a militant civil-rights organization formed in St. Louis, Missouri, in the spring of 1968.
The Liberators were led through most of their short existence by Charles Koen, who went on to organize a nationally noted civil-rights campaign in Cairo, Illinois.
[6] Following these events, the Black Liberators' headquarters were substantially damaged, according to witnesses, by plainclothes police officers.
Matters escalated when, eight days later, police arrested Charles Koen and Leon Dent for carrying a concealed weapon during a traffic stop, which was later determined to be a comb.
[citation needed] Following the arrest, Koen and Dent received strong public support from groups such as the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 688, NAACP, and St. Louis Argus.